This annual plant is native to India and the Phillipines. It grows erect to about 1.5 to 5 feet high. The real flowers are inconspicuous, but the upper leaves are scarlet and then gold towards the tips, while the rest of the leaves are green. The leaves are 1.5 to 6 inches long by about to 4 inches wide tapering to a sharp point and having long petioles. It is fast growing and can bloom in around 12 weeks after sowing seed. A number of cultivars have been developed that have slightly different heights and some with red-bronze leaves instead of green and the upper leaves can be all red in color or even pinkish. Some garden centers can sell plants already started, but most often people start from seed.